Army Demo This Weekend

GGK troops coming down from a RMAF EC725/H225M Cougar helicopter. Depot level maintenance work is done by BHIC Aeroservices Sdn Bhd, a JV between Boustead and Airbus

SHAH ALAM: Army Demo This Weekend, The Army will be holding a demonstration and exhibition at Pantai Saujana, Port Dickson this weekend as part of its 85th anniversary. The event will be held from this Friday (Mar 9) to Sunday (Mar. 11) from 8am to 5pm.

The demonstration however will only be conducted on Saturday although the event will start on Friday and ends on Sunday.

The single demonstration will be similar to the ones hold in 2014 and 2015, with some variation of course. The event in 2014 was held to mark the end of Ops Daulat, the operations against the incursion by Sulu gunmen at Lahad Datu in 2013.

The GGK Glover Webb LSV at 2015 Army demo

This was a guest post by AM for the 2015 event.

The Malaysian Army celebrated its 82nd anniversary at Port Dickson on March 7 with a sea, air and land demonstration that brought together some of the most interesting units in the Malaysian Army and support from the Royal Malaysian Air Force.

The Event
For men of the Army’s Special Forces Group, the day began long before the formal start at 8.00am with the arrival of the top brass. At least two Rigid Hulled Inflatable Boats took up station in the distance at 7.30am, accompanied by lightly crewed safety craft.

A RMAF EC-725 Cougar or H225M now was seen making preliminary orbits of the area, as much for familiarization as to sanitize the area. A gaggle of four colourful, fast moving vessels approached the army flotilla and was brought to a halt by a swift reacting safety craft. Any speculation that these were fodder for the commandos ended when the civilian craft departed and made no further appearance.

As mentioned in the post, the 2014 demonstration was more intense as it included a company of paratroopers assaulting the beach.

The beach assault however took another dimension when it was thought to be the forerunner for a Malaysian marine force. It was not it was just a demonstration of the capabilities of the 10th Para Brigade, which is the Army’s Quick Reaction unit.

GGK long guns on display at the 2015 Army demo

That said the Army also expects most of its units on alert duty to be ready to move out within several hours of notification so its not just the QRF unit that will be able to respond to any emergencies.

A GGK RIV at the 2015 Army demo

— Malaysian Defence.

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19 Comments

  1. I was wondered if Army has a Standard issue Sniper rifle, if you can ask the Army Officer Marhalim

  2. Safran,

    Since the 1990’s it has been the Arctic International L-96. The L-96 however has been gradually supplemented with other types.

    We know what rifles the army has but what we don’t know – unfortunately – is how the snipers/sharpshooters are organised and how they fit in a particular unit’s TOE.

  3. P.S. It is the Accuracy International L-96 Arctic Warfare rifle, which has been supplemented by the AX308 from the same company.

  4. Azlan,

    I thought the AX Series were only Used by Spec-ops and 10th Para. Secondly, Did Army use SR-25 and TRG-22 ?.

  5. AFAIK sharpshooters in BIS are found in Support Company. I can be wrong, as this info I got in 2004.

  6. Safran,

    The AX308 is also on issue to other units. Accuracy International has ceased producing the L-96 and many users have switched to the AX308. The army not too long ago displayed a TPG-1. You can see one in the pic Marhalim posted in this thread, above. It’s next to the Barrett.

  7. For BIS battalion,

    The Fire support company would have
    – 1 platoon of snipers
    – 1 platoon of 81mm mortars
    – 1 platoon of HMG and MGL on 4x4s
    – 1 platoon of carl gustav or ATGM

    I don’t know if this is still the current mix.

  8. – I believe it would be a section, rather than a platoon, of snipers/sharpshooters. .

    – The mortar platoon traditionally had 8 tubes.

    – By and large the Support Companies have GPMGs, not HMGs.
    We have tripod mounted HMGs but most are vehicle mounted.

    Take into account that the TOE of units can vary, i.e. some units have no RPGs, some units have no AGLs and some units no MGLs but M20A3s. Even with BIS; what a section is authorised to carry and what it actually carries can be different, depending on the circumstances. Also, when operating as part of a platoon or company, the BIS section can be augmented with extra assets for direct support, i.e. an extra LMG or even GPMGs from the Support Company.

  9. P.S.

    – Correction on my part on the HHMGs. HMGs tend to be vehicle mounted and operated by mechanised units on pintle mounts or those that have 4×4 ”weapons carriers” as part of their Support Companies. In the case of the BIS, some units have both GPMGs and HMGs in their Support Company but not all.

    – Units that have ATGWs, still have Carl Gustavs as part of their Support Company. We bought enough Carl Gustavs to equip the bulk of our battalions.

    Discussions on what the BIS sections are armed with is largely a result of the 2010 photo that was released when the BIS was first unveiled – 1 Minimi, 1 Milkor and 2 RPGs. How it’s currently armed I suspect may have slightly evolved since then or more accurately, how it was shown to be armed is what it’s authorised to carry.

    Personally I’d prefer 2 LMGs so that sections can be divided into 2 fire teams. Another problem with that in our context is that the BIS sections only have 1 Milkor. In other armies the sections will not only have a pair of LMGs [1 to each fire team] but also a pair of underslung grenade launchers [1 to each fire team]. If the BIS section is divided into 2 fire teams and is armed as shown in the 2010 pic; then it’ll have 2 fire teams with varying levels of firepower. At the end of the day [like others], the decision for 8 man sections was so it could fit in a IFV. What I’m not sure is whether non BIS or non mechanised units also have 8 man sections.

    Reply
    The Paras also have eight men sections. It is also hilarious to see the 4X4 section try fit into their vehicle when the HMG is installed.

  10. The support company TOE that … mentioned is what I heard in 2012. It was an RRD battalion. To clarify, I heard the Metis-M ATGM were authorised as 3 tripod launchers and 3 mounted launchers. I also heard it was one platoon each of HMG and MGL, but am not certain.

  11. A problem the RMN faces [same goes with its sister services] is that almost everything that goes on a ship is foreign sourced. This is something we can’t get around with but the procurement process we’ve put in place also doesn’t help. Almost everything is sourced via a local agent representing a foreign supplier. If for example the ESM breaks down and the local agent can’t rectify the issue; then the local agent will have to refer to his principal. The principal will send a field team [if the product has exceeded its warranty period the RMN will have to pay for this] to rectify the issue. All this takes paperwork and approval; takes time.

    It would simplify matters if the RMN could deal direct with the OEM without having to go through a 3rd party; which is sometimes the case but not always. Similarly, with the Metis and Igla we bought via Rosoboronexport; in the event there are issues can the army deal direct with the OEM or will it always have to go through Rosoboronexport via the Military Attache or the local Rosoboronexport representative [if there’s one]? I know that when buying spares a end user can deal direct with the OEM but if buying the actual aircraft, missile or vehicle; has to deal via Rosoboronexport.

  12. For a long period the HMG was a rarity in infantry battalions. Sure a few units had a some mounted on tripods and 1 unit had them on 4x4s but we didn’t have a lot of them. Things really changed when we got the MIFVs and Adnans and got into the 4×4 ”weapons carrier” business.

    A major problem in determining TOEs is that there can be a difference between authorised TOEs and how the various units are really equipped. This is mainly because we hardly buy enough of anything, our priorities and also because things can change along with a new leadership. An example would be the sniper/sharpshooter elements in battalions : I would be really surprised if every Malay and Ranger battalions [although they may be authorised on paper] really has snipers/sharpshooters. On the AGLs which were first bought for Bosnia; it’s anyone’s guess as to how many infantry units actually have them. On the G-Wagons, we got less than 90 – locally assembled – and not all of them ended up as ”weapons carriers”.

    Reply
    I think most of the Ranger batallions are equipped with the weapons carriers. As for the RMR, from my observations none of the BIS have them, I stand to be corrected of course. In the past, the mortar platoon have trucks to carry their mortars but I think this practise stopped in the 80s until some of them converted to mechanised or PARA batallions. I am guessing this is also the same for the Rejimen Sempadan batallions.

  13. @ azlan

    “How it’s currently armed I suspect may have slightly evolved since then or more accurately, how it was shown to be armed is what it’s authorised to carry. ”

    Of course the BIS sections are authorized to carry 1 Minimi, 1 Milkor and 2 RPG. But operational circumstances will decide what they will be carrying. I have seen latest pictures of those deployed to ESSCOM, all are carrying only M4s. But uniquely all were equipped with flashlight attachments on the handguard. No minimi, milkor or RPG carried on patrols.

    @ marhalim

    ” The Paras also have eight men sections. It is also hilarious to see the 4X4 section try fit into their vehicle when the HMG is installed”

    1 more reason why DAGOR is ideal for something like that. It can actually carry 9, even with HMG mounted.

    @ AM

    ” The support company TOE that … mentioned is what I heard in 2012″

    Is it the 1st Ranger? There are 18 G-wagons with Metis-M. As they equipped the 3 battalions of 7th Brigade (one of it is the 1st Ranger), 1 platoon would be 6 Metis-M G-wagons. Probably it could be detached easily to be operated on foot, but like the HMG and AGL, it was rarely done.

    @ azlan

    ” …or will it always have to go through Rosoboronexport via the Military Attache or the local Rosoboronexport representative [if there’s one]?”

    How we does things is that, it will be through multiple local companies that will buy them with Rosoboronexport. The local companies will sometimes be required to keep stock of fast moving spare parts (through multi year support contracts)

  14. @ azlan

    ” An example would be the sniper/sharpshooter elements in battalions : I would be really surprised if every Malay and Ranger battalions [although they may be authorised on paper] really has snipers/sharpshooters”

    Probably not snipers in special forces sense, but more of a sharpshooter, that takes out targets at longer range than a normal soldier.

    ” On the G-Wagons, we got less than 90 – locally assembled – and not all of them ended up as weapons carriers”

    Weapons carriers – we have around 80 G-wagons, 100 VAMTACS (not including those towing 105mm guns), and now ??? GK-M1s

    @ Marhalim

    ” As for the RMR, from my observations none of the BIS have them, I stand to be corrected of course”

    This is from 5 RAMD, a part of the 7th Infantry Brigade

    http://3.bp.blogspot.com/–t9sy2DrvrE/UKEdX3sWgqI/AAAAAAAAAgk/ussZ-39LoIc/s1600/g-wagon.jpg

    The left “kerbau” emblem is of the 7th Brigade, the right emblem is for the 5 RAMD.

    Reply
    Is the 5 RAMD a BIS?

  15. – The Metis I believe is only operated by a RMR unit and we only bought 18 – mounted first on G-Wagons, then VAMTACS.

    – In the 1970’s and 1980’s the 81mm mortars were carried in Volvo C303s and Land Rovers. Now, if I had to guess, in VAMTACs, Handalans or still in Land Rovers. We only have 4 MIFVs with 81mm mortars and 8 Adnans with 120mm ones. Not sure how many Adnan mortar variants there are. 3 types of 81mms are operated – the M86, Expal and Denel one. Ironic how we bought our M86s from the former Yugoslavia and later deployed them to Bosnia in MIFVs.

    – On the VAMTACS an initial 85 were ordered in 2008, followed by a smaller order, if I’m not mistaken. Like the G-Wagons not all of them ended up as ”weapons carriers” – many ended up with staff elements. If we take into account that not all the G-Wagons and VAMTACs ended up as ”weapons carriers” and that less than 100 each were ordered; we can safely assume that not all of the 25 Royal Malay, 10 Royal Ranger and 5 Border Regiments battalions [not sure how many battalions are in the 2nd Border Regiment brigade] have them in their Support Companies. I’ve also been told they don’t. We can also safely assume the TA units don’t have them.

    – On the RPGs. At DSA 2002 a POF spokesman said we bought 14,000. He didn’t specify how many launchers we got. Given that we bought rounds from Romania later and can’t have expended such a large number in training; I guess the POF ones time expired. By and large RPG-7s rounds last about 10 years but many have been known to have lasted longer; especially ones made in Russia.

    – A number of non TA units still have HK11s. We never bought enough Minimis to equip all units.

    – What about pistols? As of a few years back the Browning HP was still around. I guess now it’s mostly a mix of Glocks and Vektors. Was the Taurus ever ordered?

    … – ”Of course the BIS sections are authorized to carry 1 Minimi, 1 Milkor and 2 RPG. But operational circumstances will decide what they will be carrying”

    Which is I believe, what I said. I also questioned if the way BIS sections are armed has changed since 2010. Along the way we may have sen fit to make slight changes.

  16. …. – ”How we does things is that, it will be through multiple local companies that will buy them with Rosoboronexport”

    On paper yes but in reality the problem occurs when a local company faces issues and can’t deliver and when either Rosoboronexport or the OEM [for whatever reason] can’t deliver on time. These things have happened and it is the armed services who suffer. We got acquainted with the Russian way of doing things in the 1990’s when we bought the Fulcrums. There was a incident once when the end user dealt directly with the OEM : a few faxes remained unanswered for weeks for the simple reason that the only person who could understand English in a small office located in the middle of no where in Russia was on leave. To be fair however things have improved. Not helping matters is the procurement process we’ve put in place which on paper is suppose to benefit the armed services rather than local companies but more often than not; the reverse happens.

  17. – 5 RAMD is a BIS battalion. I believe all RS battalions is not BIS. 10 Para battalions are BIP and 4 Mech battalions are BIM.

    – I have not seen metis-m on vamtacs before. Even in the latest firepower demonstrations it is still on g-wagons.

    – i have seen VAMTACS used as staff vehicles as it is a full cabin version, but i have never seen a g-wagon staff vehicle before. VAMTACS are bought in a few batches. There are weapons carriers, 105mm gun towers, Igla launchers. I don’t think the RS has a fire support company with weapon carriers as they are not a BIS battalion.

    – from the 35 infantry battalions, minus 4 are mechanized, so 31. Say each has 1 platoon of weapon carriers. That would be 186 vehicles. Plus additional 18 with metis-m. That would be a total requirement of 204 weapon carriers. And probably battalion istiadats like 1 RAMD and 6 RRD won’t have weapon carriers too, so you can minus that and it would be a bit less than 200 vehicles.

    @ azlan

    “On paper yes but in reality the problem occurs when a local company faces issues and can’t deliver”

    That is why i said now the local companies has to stock up fast moving parts as a part of their contracts. Those are the lessons learnt from the early days of operating the MiGs.

  18. Here’s an unrelated update, it was confirm by the RMN chief that the country’s forth naval base will be build in Bintulu which when completed would be undertaken by the Eastern Fleet Armada Command. It was noted a few months ago during the launch of the MMEA ship that Sarawak is willing to provide financial support for more patrol vessels so guess there should not be any issues in getting the land for the base, or perhaps some state finance frigates. Read here: http://www.theborneopost.com/2018/03/08/navy-to-set-up-fourth-base-in-bintulu-rmn-chief/

  19. …. – ”That is why i said now the local companies has to stock up fast moving parts as a part of their contracts.”

    What they must do as part of contractual obligations is one thing; what the actually do is another, unfortunately.

    Thanks to the procurement/support process we have in place, the armed services are often at the mercy of local companies. The result is that the armed forces and tax payer gets shortchanged or don’t get their ringgit’s worth.

    In less than 20 years we transitioned from G-Wagons to VAMTACS to Weststars. In all cases it wasn’t the army who laid the specs or who influenced what was bought but the local industry. Keeping to time honoured tradition; we bought a bit of everything but enough of nothing. Who know’s, maybe in a few years time another local company will get a contract to deliver yet another 4×4. Also, whilst I get the need for an armed 4×4 to be used for stuff like convoy escort and security at bases/installations, etc, I really have to question the wisdom of fixing a crew mounted weapon on a 4×4 and placing in a situation where it will come under return direct fire. Others have found this out the hard way; we unfortunately haven’t and have also forgotten lessons from the 2nd Emergency where numerous casualties were sustained by troops in totally unprotected vehicles.

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